Varsha Sriram

Rajnikanth asked Rahul Gandhi not to resign, but instead said that he should prove his leadership as he is a capable leader.

At a time when Rahul Gandhi is hell-bent on resigning from his post as the Congress President in the light of the party’s dismal defeat in the 17th Lok Sabha general election, he has found support from an unlikely quarter; Superstar Rajinikanth. 

While addressing the media outside his Poes Garden residence in Chennai on Tuesday, the 68-year-old actor advised the Congress President not step down from his post. 

When questioned over speculations of Rahul Gandhi resigning from his post, the actor said, “No I won’t say that he lacks leaderships qualities. The thing is that it is very difficult to handle the age-old Congress party. Senior most people are there in the party. So as a youngster it is very difficult to handle them.” In his observation of Congress’s performance, he feels that senior Congress leaders have not cooperated well and did not work hard enough. 

Rajnikanth asked Rahul Gandhi not to resign, but instead said that he should prove his leadership as he is a capable leader. “As important as the ruling party is in a democracy, the opposition party is equally important. The opposition party should also be strong,” he added. 

Rajinikanth also acknowledged that he received an invitation to attend the swearing-in-ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled on May 30 in the national capital and also confirmed that he will be attending the same. 

The actor’s reaction came amidst high drama within the congress party after it was completely washed out winning only 52 seats in the Lok Sabha elections. Rahul Gandhi lost in Amethi, known as a Gandhi Bastion to Union Minister Smriti Irani. After a humiliating loss, he offered his resignation during the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on May 25, but it was “unanimously rejected.” However it is said that Rahul Gandhi is determined to step down and reports suggested that he had met K.C Venugopal and Ahmed Patel and asked them to find a replacement for the post.